And Now
by opalheart12
Summary: Crane and Abbie are off on vacation when he decides to let her know how much he needs her in his life. One-shot.
_**A/N: I have been in an extremely romantic mood since I got back from New York City so I thought I would write an insanely romantic Ichabbie one-shot. Enjoy!**_

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The sun was bright and warm on her skin as her feet dug into the sand. The breeze blew every few minutes, enough that she did not feel she was melting in the sun. The water rushed up to greet her feet and she bent down to sit, relishing in the cool touch the water provided. She felt the wind blow her hair and she smiled up at the sun, feeling peace at long last.

The hours raced by as she enjoyed simply _being_ alive. Before she knew it, the sun disappeared beyond the horizon and she sighed happily as she got up to head to the beach cabin. He was sitting outside in a wicker chair, watching her intently as only he could. She smiled at him from her distance away and he felt his insides light up as he saw the sparkle in her eyes. The late evening glow made her skin sparkle gold and he tried to keep his mouth from watering at the sight of her exposed skin.

He recalled the earlier morning when he'd watched her put on her favorite swimsuit: navy blue with a white cover-up. Her feet were bare as they had been since they'd first arrived to Seychelles. She reached up to take off the cover-up and tossed it into the chair as he stood to walk toward her.

"I've missed you." He said as he kissed her hair and pulled her close to him.

She moaned and looked up, kissing his neck because she would never be tall enough to kiss his forehead. "I've barely been a few feet from you all day. You could've joined me in the water, you know."

He smiled down at her, his heart swelling at the love he saw in her eyes. It surprised him frequently that she felt the same as he did. "I know. But I preferred watching you in the water, seeing how happy you were."

She nodded and smiled up at him. "I'll race you to the shower." Suddenly, she was off, running into the house at the speed of light. A laugh escaped him as he ran after her.

The cabin was not very tiny, though it was not very large either. When he finally got to their room, he heard the water running in the bathtub and could smell coconut and lavender wafting in from the bathroom. When he arrived in the bathroom, he saw that her clothes were gone and she stood before him with a mischievous smile on her face before she submerged herself in the deep tub, moaning at the temperature.

He knew the water must be practically scalding. She loved her water that way since she tended to stay in for quite a while. He repeated her actions and joined her in the bathtub, sitting behind her. She sighed as he wrapped his arms around her.

"I want this forever." She said quietly, thinking out loud.

"You have me forever, Abbie. Always."

She looked up at him curiously. "Do you mean it?"

He was quiet for a time, starring at no particular point on the wall before he turned back to her with a conviction in his eyes she'd never seen before. "I mean it with all my heart and all my soul. You are all I could ever want, all I could ever need in this life or any other. Will you marry me?"

Her eyes went wide and her mind blank. Her heart was beating so hard she thought it might come out of her chest. She turned around fully to face him. "I-but what about...you still want to...even after Katrina?"

He positioned himself beneath her and pulled her down so that she was straddling him. "I want _you_ , Abbie. Only you." She rocked herself forward, sighing out when she felt him move within her. She leaned forward as he held her tightly. "Always you." He breathed out as he moved faster.

"I never thought this would happen." She gasped out as he sat up against her.

"Marriage?"

"No," Abbie ground out. "No, you and me."

He closed his eyes as she rode him faster, wondering what he had ever done in his life to deserve the paradise that was Grace Abigail Mills. She was everything he'd never known he wanted. She knew him, truly knew him in a way no one else did, not even Katrina. What he felt for her was...earth shattering. It took his breath away. It made him thank God every morning he was awake that he even existed in the same time as Abbie.

"You ought to have known. I denied it at first, denied _you_ then. But no more." He held on to her for dear life as he felt himself moving closer to the edge.

She kissed him just then, overcome with love for the man before her, the man who'd turned her life upside down from the minute he appeared. "And now?"

"Now? I could not dream of denying you anything."

They rode the tidal wave together, holding onto one another desperately, each one shouting the other's name. When it was over, she rested her head against his chest, hearing his heart begin to slow slightly from the frantic pace it worked up only moments before.

"You have my heart, Crane. You have everything. Don't ruin it." She breathed out as she closed her eyes tightly.

Sometimes Abbie forgot she and Crane were together. She'd spent such a long time denying any feeling she had for him, convincing herself that he could never love her, that it still felt surreal to be with him. In that moment, she felt thankful that Jenny and Joe had pushed them off on a vacation so they could have time for themselves. It was only their fourth day in Seychelles and Abbie knew she never wanted to leave.

"I won't. I swear it."

* * *

An hour later, they sat on the porch swing on their balcony, looking up at the clear night sky. Abbie had not seen so many stars in her life. Crane hadn't seen so many since before he met Abbie. She was laying across the swing with her head in his lap and he was running his hand through her hair. All that could be heard was the sound of waves crashing up against the shore and their steady breathing.

"I forgot to say yes."

He looked down at her and a small smile passed across his face. "I do not hold any blame to you, Lieutenant. We were...previously occupied." He let out a booming laugh that Abbie eventually joined in.

"Well," she said when she finally caught her breath. "I do. I want to marry you, Ichabod Alexander Crane." She reached up to touch his face and he leaned into her hand, an expression of utter content on his face.

"I am privileged that you would accept an old fool like me into your heart."

She let out a soft laugh again as she pulled his hand forward to kiss it. "You're _my_ fool, old man."

"As long as you'll have me."

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 _ **A/N: What did you think? Anymore one-shot ideas you would like to see? Let me know! Until next time...**_


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